Journal lubricators



May 21, 1963 L. E. HOYER ETAL JOURNAL LUBRICATORS 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 11, 1962 Edwa rd :"i' Gore May 21, 1963 L. E. HOYER ET AL JOURNAL LUBRICATORS Filed Sept. 11, 1962 5 Sheets$heet 2 llllk m Fm 2 NW i imm m? Q Q m num wig H m m W k wia mk E, mr 3 E,

May 21, 1963 1.. HOYER ET AL JOURNAL LUBRICATORS 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Sept. 11, 1962 5 r O I n E V n I LEEWQH n faji a r Edwmr H. GQZ'C%QLL 5 awwjw May 23, 1963 L. E. HOYER ET AL JOURNAL LUBRICATORS 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Sept. 11, 1962 gowc ca,

Invemiors Liewelh /n E fiafer Edwa rd 52 u u a e, 6mm 3% May 21, 1963 L. E. HOYER EI'AL 3,090,560

JOURNAL LUBRICATORS Filed Sept. ll, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 4e 45 Edwa rd. R. Gorcgca B3 amd :Dm/

sesame JQURNAL LUBRIQATGRS Llewellyn E. Hoyer, Wyckoft, and Edward R. Gorcyca,

Mahwah, NJ., assignors to American Brake Shoe 6Company, New York, NIL, a corporation of Delaware Filed Sept. 11, 1962, Ser. No. 223,304 9 Claims. (Ci. 308-243) This invention relates to a lubricator for the journal of a railroad car.

This application is a continuation-in-part of our copending application, Serial No. 119,943, filed June 27, 1961, now abandoned.

A railroad car equipped with partial or segmental bearings has the journal disposed in a journal box, and the bearing is lubricated by lubricant that is passed upwardly from the bottom of the journal box to the journal, the journal in turn, by its rotation, serving to carry the lubricant to the bearing.

It was proposed quite early in the art in Devlan United States Patent No. 9,100 (June 8, 1869) to accomplish such lubrication by having resort to elastic sponge-like material packed into two pouches or pockets afiorded by an open mesh cloth cover. The Devlan construction is such that the resultant lubricator is in the form of two pads united along a flexible joint and at the center, and these are insertable as a unit in the journal box beneath the journal to engage the journal. Thus, the Devlan construction entails resort to two laterally spaced pads that clasp widely spaced peripheral portions of the journal. In fact the drawings of the Devlan patent show a rather spacious, unlubricated triangular-shaped void at the bottom of the journal bounded by the journal and the pad surfaces adjacent the joint between the pads.

Koch United States Patent No. 591,406 (October 12, 1897) discloses a lubricator comprising two individual pads of felt or the like bound together in a unit which fits in a journal box below the journal. As shown in FIG. 2 of this patent, the upper portions of the pads, as in Devlan, clasp the journal in rather widely spaced positions while leaving the same sort of unlubricated space as does Devlan. However, Koch also discusses at some length, and discloses in FIG. 1 of the patent, the idea of interposing between the aforesaid two pads a straight-through or radial pad of felt or the like (that is, matted material) that extends from contact with the bottom of the journal box to contact with the nadir point of the car journal, filling the unlubricated void that would otherwise exist. As to this, it is stated in Koch Patent No. 591,406: In some of the forms of my invention a portion of the lubricator carrying fibrous material is arranged to lie tangentially to the exterior of the journal while other parts of the fibrous material have their fibers projecting radially.

Being of felt or other matted material, the Koch lubricator will tend to harden and glaze during actual running conditions. Moreover, the matted felt fibers present a hot-box hazard since these are likely to be torn loose by the rotating journal (waste grab) and trapped between the bearing and journal where they may ignite due to heat generated by friction. The Koch lubricator, in other words, has some of the deficiencies of loose, unsecured waste packing in a journal box known to present hot-box hazards due to waste grab occurrences.

In fact, the deficiencies of waste packing as a lubricator are recognized in Patent No. 2,713,524. Here, the lubricator is disclosed as a single pad or block-type lubricator comprising a sponge-like body disposed in a pocket afforded by a fabric cover or jacket. The fabric cover on its exterior surface is provided with secured or interlaced pile loops in position to engage the journal, and

i att this, according to US. Patent No. 2,713,524, purportedly characterizes the lubricator of that patent as one which combines the advantages of waste and yarn packing lubricators with those of the sponge-type lubricators while eliminating many of their inherent disadvantages. This lubricator, however, is diflicult to manufacture and does not provide the area contact with a journal accomplished with a multiple pad construction such as represented by Devlan and Koch.

More recently in the art, it is proposed in United States Patent No. 2,970,870 to construct a railroad journal lubricator by disposing synthetic sponge rubber inserts in a pair of pockets formed from fabric material having a napped or pile loop surface. To this extent the construction is akin to Devlan. In fact, cognizance is taken in Patent No. 2,970,870 of the early Devlan lubricator, and it is stated in this regard that the Devlan arrangement, having the unlubricated void space above noted, produces an unsatisfactory feed of lubricant. According to what is stated in Patent No. 2,970,870, immediately following the analysis therein of Devlan, the lubricator disclosed therein, when inserted in a journal box, will be sufficiently squeezed or compressed to force together the walls of adjoining pockets to cause the pile on the walls to commingle to form a double wall passageway substantially on the vertical center line of the journal for feeding oi-l direct to the journal.

Investigations show, however, that the commingling specified in Patent No. 2,970,870 does not account for the most eiiicient flow of lubricant to the journal. As can be readily visualized, the haphazard intermingling of pile loops in a vertical path will impede the progress of lubricant by capillarity through the pile loops, and as will be apparent from the drawings in Patent No. 2,970,- 870, movement of lubricant from the lowest part of the journal box (where the oil supply will be deepest) directly to the nadir point of the journal is not an assured relationship under this patent.

No one of or any combination of prior art patents including those discussed above and others well known in the art has afforded a solution to the most vital aspect of proper railroad journal lubrication which is that involved when the railroad car first starts motion. At this instant, movement of lubricant from the lowest part of the journal box directly to the nadir point of the journal along the shortest path is important. In other Words, whatis needed is an immediate flow of lubricant from the oil reservoir to the journal the instant the car starts in motion, since at this time it is important that oil be carried around in copious amounts to the journal bearing, especially where the car has been standing idle for quite some time resulting in a dry bearing. Thus, when the car starts in motion after standing, there is a change from a purely static to a kinetic state, and the best assurance to proper journal bearing lubrication is a quick, direct feed of oil from the reservoir to the journal.

It is the solution of the aforesaid problem in a practical manner that represents the advance in the art to which the present invention pertains. This We achieve under the present invention by incorporating in the lubricator, between the pad members thereof as hereinafter more fully described, a separately fabricated narrow center wick consisting of numerous elongated and reversely looped yarns arranged in bundled form to extend for the full length or" the lubricator, with lower or bottom yarn loops in position to tap the deepest part of the oil reservoir in the journal box and with upper or top yarn loops in positionto contact the nadir portions of the car journal. Resultantly, there are numerous, closely bundled, upright capillary paths uniformly parallel to one another directly between the oil reservoir and the journal when the lubricator is installed, as distinguished from random, tortuous paths represented by matted or felt wicks on one hand or adjacent fabric strips having interwoven pile loops commingled on the other hand. This arrangement under the present invention contributes to a prompt feed of copious amounts of lubricant in response to the commencement of car motion.

Specifically, an object of the present invention is to construct a railroad journal lubricator to have a cover of woven wicking material affording a pair of pockets receiving inserts of resilient, porous oil-resistant material. The cover-is inclusive of pile loops that are uniformly distributed therethrough, and these loops together with the essential wicking' nature of the cover itself and the oilabsorbent inserts, enables lubricant in the bottom of the journal box to be furnished to appreciably wide areas of the journal on opposite sides of the lower or nadir point of the journal. The nadir portion of the journal is contacted by a center wick pad of bundled yarns firmly secured to the cover material between the pockets, and the yarns in the bundle extend straight from the bottom of the journal box to contact the journal at the nadir por-. tion thereof between the areas normflly contacted by the pile loops on what amount to the upper sides of the cover pockets. Another object of the present invention is to enable the foregoing to be achieved while using but a single piece of pile loop fabric for the lubricator cover. Such construction constitutes a specific object of the present invention, and other objects of the present invention are to stifien the sides of the lubricator to afford retainers, to join together the two pieces affording the pockets in an advantageous manner, and to construct the center pad in a unique fashion.

'Other and further objects of the present invention will be apparent from the following description and claims and are illustrated in the accompanying drawings which, by way of illustration, show a preferred embodiment of the present invention and the principles thereof and what is now considered to be the best mode contemplated for applying these principles. Other embodiments of the invention embodying the same or equivalent principles may be made as desired by those skilled in the art without departing from the present invention and the purview of the appended claims.

In the drawings:

. FIG. 1 is an exploded, somewhat schematic view illustrating the overall construction of one form of lubricator of the present invention;

FIG; 1A is a diagrammatic view of the lubricator of FIG. 1 illustrating the generation of the yarns and threads which afford the center wick pad;

FIG. 1*Bis a section taken as indicated in FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2 is a perspective View of the completed lubricator illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG.- 3 is a fragmentary view illustrating details of the center wick pad of the lubricator of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3A- is a view taken substantially on the line 3A-3A of FIG. 3 to illustrate further details of the center wick;

FIGS. 4' and 5 are sectional views of a journal box illustrating the lubricator of FIG. 1 in an operative state therein;

FIG. 6 is a view illustrating the manner in which a center wick is obtained by folding;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of another lubricator constructed in accordance with the present invention; and

FIGS. 8 and 9 are sectional views of the lubricator shown in'FIG. 7.

Oneform of lubricator of the present invention is illustrated at 10in FIG 2', and the various features of constnuction are shown in FIG. 1. The essential features of construction will first be described, after which will be described the general manner in which the lubricator is assembled.

; Thus, the lubricator 10 includes an outer cover 12 essentially of two-piece construction as will be explained in detail hereinafter, and these two cover pieces 12A and PB, FIG. '1, are oriented, shaped, and joined to afford a pair of open ended pockets 14A and 14B adapted to receive respective resilient, oil-absorbent inserts 15A and 153. When the parts are joined, the lubricator 16, FIG. 2, becomes a unitary assembly that can be handled as such, inserted into arid removed from a journal box I B, FIGS. 4 and 5. An essential characteristic of the present lubricator is that a center wick pad 20, FIG. 1, of bundled yarns is separately fabricated and secured in place between the cover pockets 14A and 1413 as will be apparent particularly in FIGS. 2. and 3.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, the lubricator 10 is to be installed in the journal box IE of a railroad car having the journal portion I of its axle A extended into the journal box. The journal I rotates in contact with the low fric tion face F of a bearing B that is held in place in the journalbox by a Wedge W.

The pockets 14A and 1433 have open ends as noted above and each is essentially in the form of a sleeve as will be apparent from FIG. 1. The cover material used to construct the two sleeves or cover pieces 12A and 12B is a strong, fast-wicking cotton duck material, and the oil feeding characteristic thereof is supplemented and enhanced by weaving pile loop yarns therethrough that have extended loops 21, FIGS. 2 and 3, so that the outer surface of the cover of the lubricator is essentially a fabric surface heavily matted with yarn loops 21.

Thus, the outer surface of the lubricator is in a highly fiuifed state and in the actual construction the individual loops are readily apparent as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 hereof. These loops 21 at the bottom or underside of the lubricator, as will be apparent from FIGS. 4 and 5 hereof, will soak up a great deal of the lubricant L at the bottom of the journal box JB and such will be relayed through the inserts 15A and 1513 to the pile loops 21 at the upper side of the lubricator in direct contact with the arcuate segments A1 and A2 of generous area on opposite sides of the vertical center plane of the car journal I.

The cover pieces that afford the pocket constructions are selected of such dimension as to afford substantially rectangular cavities when folded in the manner illustrated in FIG. 1 to bring the free ends E1 and E2 thereof into lapped relationship which is what constitutes the outer side of each pocket 14A and 143. Thus, the upper and lower sides of the fabric pieces 12A and 12B are con-tinuous, and the pile loops 21 are uniformly and thickly distributed. This is also true of the inner adjacent sides of the pockets as will be apparent in HG. 1. However, the outer sides of the fabric pieces 12A and 12B are dis continuous where the free ends E1 and E2 of the fabric pieces 12A and 12B are butted.

While not critical or essential, it is advantageous that a lubricator such as 10 be retained against undue shifting within the journal box. Thus, referring to FIG. 4, the lubricator 163 in actual operation may tend to be shifted to one side of the journal box or the other depending.

upon the direction of rotation of the journal. The journal box on the inner sides is equipped with stop columns S01 and $02 which are part of the standard construction. In the present instance, the free ends E1 and E2 of the cover pieces 12A and 12B are used as anchor points for heavy or stfi cotton duck which afford a pair of retainers 22 that are relatively stiff in nature and which are respectively engageable with one or the other of the journal box stop columns to thereby limit the extent of shifting movement of the lubricator laterally of the journal box as viewed in FIG. 4.

In achieving this construction, each retainer 22 is in elusive of a pair of U-folded pieces of heavy cotton duck 23'and 24, heavier than the fabric 12. These are folded to embrace respectively the free fabric ends E1 and E2 at the outer sides of the lubricator, and thereafter the six plies ofcotton duck at the medial longitudinal plane of each outer side of the lubricator are stitched together to afford the quite stiff retainers 22.

As noted above, the fabric pieces 12A and 12B are selected to afford pockets that me rectangular in crosssection, and these pockets are so dimensioned as to neatly receive the respectively porous, oil-absorbent inserts 15A and 153 which preferably are of acrylonitrile synthetic rubber. This particular synthetic rubber is easily molded, is highly resilient and does not deteriorate in the presence of oil.

The inserts 15A and 1513 can be of neoprene or other synthetic rubber in achieving an operative structure, but acrylonitrile sometimes does not take on the degree of permanent set that neoprene rubber will, and it can be cut from a slab without being molded in final form, whereas neoprene rubber frequently must be molded to final form.

The acrylonitrile rubber inserts 15A and 153 may be of special construction as will now be explained. Referring to FIG. 4, it will be apparent that there is more space in the journal box immediately beneath the journal for receiving the lubricator than there is outward of the vertical plane of the journal. In other words, the arcuate contour at the inside of the journal box is not concentric to the journal, and diminishing space is available for receiving the lubricator proceeding outward on either side of a vertical plane through the journal and the journal box.

it is important in some instances that the lubricator be under uniform compression. Stated in other words, it may be important that areas of high pressure on the lubricator be avoided in order that the lubricator will not tend to run hot at the high points. In order that this possibili-ty may be alleviated, each insert 15A and 15B is constructed from a pair of blocks and 26 of acrylonitrile rubber aforesaid. These blocks are initially cut from a quite large sheet of acrylonitrile rubber, and then each block 25 and 26 for an insert itself is cut along a bias line at one corner thereof to afford a bevelled face or edge as 25B and 2613.

The blocks thus having the bevelled edges are then juxtaposed so that the bevelled edges are juxtaposed one to the other at what will be the outer side of the assembled insert 15A or 1513. Such relationship affords a notch 28, FIG. 1, at the outer side of the insert block. An efiicient oil-permeable cement is used to join the two blocks 25 and 26 in the relationship shown in FIG. 1.

The V-notch becomes an important part of the insert at the outer side of the insert. Thus, referring to FIG. 4, the two V-notches 28 of the two inserts 15A and 15B allow the inserts to be squeezed with less pressure at their outer sides than at their inner sides, whereby in effect the inserts are uniformly under pressure when installed in the journal box.

Each cover piece 12A and 123, at each open end thereof, is equipped with a fabric strap 3%) initially secured by a stitch to the upper edge of the related fabric piece 12A or 12B. After the inserts 15A and 1513 have been completed as aforesaid, these are then in condition to be disposed in the corresponding pockets 14A and 143. When this step has been completed, the free ends of straps 39 are then stitched to the fabric pieces 12A and 12B. Consequently, the inserts are retained in place against displacement relative to the pockets 14A and 14B. It will be appreciated of course that the straps 3d at the ends of the pockets opposite that into which the inserts 15A and 15B are initially moved can be secured at both their ends.

The center wick 2% of bundled yarn-s, as shown in FIG. 4, is in position to extend parallel to the vertical center plane of the journal. Thus, the center wick will relay oil directly from the lower-most or deepest part of the journal box to the low part of the journal. We have found that it is important that this be an immediate and copious response, that is, that the center wick be of such construction as to assure a rapid feed of oil along a direct and immediate path to the journal the the instant that the journal starts to rotate. This is important because, as noted above, it has been determined that hot-box problems frequently originate due to improper lubrication when a railroad car first starts motion, manifest in a change from static to kinetic conditions for the journal and its bearing.

Under the present invention, the center wick 29 is separately fabricated to be of special w-icking character so that its wicking characteristics will be entirely independent of the inserts 15A and 15B and the associated cover parts. In accomplishing this, we compose the center wick 2i? to have a weft or ller in the form of yarns. Each weft or filler pick preferably comprises at least five yarns Y1, Y2, Y3, Y4 and Y5 as shown in FIG. 1A.

The yarns are bundled uniquely by warps as hereinafter described to produce loops pick so that there will be numerous loops exposed at the upper and lower end of the wick insert 219, FIG. 2, in operative position, there being the five upper loops L1, L2, L3, L4 and L5, FIG. 2, and the five corresponding lower loops L1, L2, L3, L4 and L5. The yarns are thus bundled by numerous rows of warps in the form of individual chain stitched threads K1 through K15, FIG. 1A. In the completed wick, there are eight picks per inch as shown in FIG. 3A, and from this it will be seen that there are numerous exposed loops, top and bottom, in the center wick 2d.

The generation of the weft and the warp to afford the bundled yarn center wick 2i? is shown in detail in FIG. 1A. As noted, the weft is afiorded by picks of five yarns each. Every two picks of live yarns each (ten yarn lengthssee FIG. 1B) are bundled together by the chain stitched threads K1 K15 as will be particularly evident in FIG. 1B. When the weft is beaten up, what is virtually the open projection shown in FIG. 1A becomes the tight matted material of FIG. 3A. By selectively ravelling and removing the outer-most ones of the chain stitches, K1 and K15, FIG. 1A, the size of the loops L1 through L5 and L1 through L5 can be determined to suit needs.

It may be mentioned at this point that the bundled yarns are secured by a lock stitch LN, FIG. 1, along the longitudinal center line. This prevents the yarns from being extended at one side and distended at the other side merely by a tub or pull exerted thereon. Thus, the lock stitch LN prevents a yarn from being ravelled when tugged by a rough spot that may develop on the journal.

It will be appreciated from what is shown in the drawings that a particular, individual yarn as Y1 or Y5 is continuous from one end of the center wick 2a to the other. Long, continuous lengths of the material for each center wick as 29 are prepared in a knitting machine and are severed into the lengths desired for each center wick.

In order to facilitate removal of the lubricator from the journal box, a strap 35 of belting or the like, FIG. 1, is looped about the inner sides of the fabric pieces 12A and 12B so as to embrace the same and is secured in place as will be noted hereinafter to afiord end loops 35A and 35B, PEG. 5, at either end of the lubricator. The two loops 35A and 35B are in keeping with what is essentially a reversible construction of the lubricator inasmuch as the geometry thereof is completely symmetrical throughout as will be appreciated from the drawings, and what has been set forth above.

In constructing the lubricator, the strip that affords the strap 35 is first laid down in an extended state on a supporting surface, whereafter the extended cover piece 12A is then juxtaposed thereon. The bundled yarn center wick 2% is then centered with respect to the portion of the strap 35 that is overlaid by the aforesaid juxtaposed cover piece, whereafter the remaining cover piece as 123 is then juxtaposed on the exposed face of the center wick 2i Advantageously, the cover pieces bear guides at the turn of each five-yarn 7 in the form of interwoven distinctly colored warps to assure centering and proper alignment.

Finally, the free ends of the strap 35 are then folded over the adjacent edges of the cover piece 128 and the strap 35 is manipulated until the desired loop extensions 35A and 358 have been achieved. Complete symmetry is carefully determined, and thereafter the parts are joined together by strong stitches S1 and S2 that are run the length of the strap 35 as will be apparent from FIG. 3. In this manner, the strap 35 is secured to the portions of the cover pieces 12A and 123 that define the inner sides or walls of the pockets 14A and 14B, and at the same time the center filler 29 of bundled yarns is secured properly in place and is joined to the cover pieces 12A and 12B as well as to the strap 35. It has already been noted that the y-arns Y1 to Y are prevented from distending by a lock stitch LN, and advantageously this same sort of locking can be used to prevent the pile loops 21 on the cover from being distended due to a journal grab or the like.

After the foregoing initial or preliminary steps have been accomplished the pocket construction can then be completed, the retainers 21 and 22 arranged and secured in place, and the inserts A and 15B arranged and secured in place to complete the construction of the lubricator.

The lubricator it} when installed in a journal box assumes the state illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5. Before installation the lubricator is allowed to soak up oil to the saturation point of the inserts 15A and 15B, and consequently the lubricator prior to installation is heavily logged with oil to supplement the oil supply L, FIG. 5, normally present in the journal box. Undue pressure at the outer extremities of the inserts 15A and 15B is relieved by the notches 23.

It will be observed that the lubricator is of a width, FIG. 4, which disposes the retainers 22 respectively adjacent the horizontal surfaces of the stop columns S01 and SCZ. Such arrangement of parts prevents excessive circumferential shifting of the lubricator it} during operation as noted above. From an axial standpoint the lubricator '10 is of such length, FIG. 5, as to embrace that portion of the journal I that is separated by the fillet surfaces F1 and F2 respectively adjacent the end collar C and the dust guard seat DS of the car axle. Hence, it will be seen that substantially the entire length of the portion of the journal that rotates on the bearing B will be lubricated, and a quite ample segment at the lower part of the journal is contacted by the upper sides of the lubricator cover in the journal box.

The primary advantage of the present lubricator resides in the nature of the center wick 29 above described. Thus, when the center wick is operatively associated with the lubricator it it will be recognized, particularly from FIG. 3, that each yarn in effect represents a direct, vertical capillary path from the deepest part of the journal box, FIG. 4, to the nadir portion of the journal J. The

loops L1 through L5 submerged in the deepest part of the journal box where the oil supply will prevail, effectively tap this oil reservoir, and by the same token the yarn loops L1 through L5 :at the top of the center wick 20 Will account for good coverage of the nadir portion 'of the journal.

It was noted above that the center wick 2t) is preferably composed of weft or filler picks of five yarns each. By selecting center wick material twice the normal length (normal being considered the condition in FIG. 2) this double length can be folded upon itself as shown in FIG. 6 to afiord a modified center wick 20A twice the thickness of the center wick 20. It is merely necessary to bring the free ends of the folded Wick 20A into juxtaposition as shown in FIG..6 and thereafter arrange the same between the adjacent sides of the covers 12A and 1213 in lieu of the center wick 2!} above described.

It 'will be recognized that the folded wick 20A will afford even more bombing of the yarn loops at the bottom of the center wick that are to tap the reservoir as above described and more bunching of the yarn loops at the top of the center wick that are to contact the nadir portion of the car journal as above described. Additionally, the modified center wick ZilA advantageously has closed or bight ends at the fore and aft portions of the completed lubricator, and it is found that the thick, folded center wick as shown in FIG. 6 withstands vertically applied pressures to a greater extent in comparison to the center wick 20.

Another form of lubricator within the purview of the present invention is identified by reference character 49 in FIG. 7, the lubricator in this instance presenting a pair of insert-receiving brackets 41 and 42, FIG. 8, which are designed by folding a single piece of fabric wicking material 44 including pile loops 46 presented on all exterior surfaces thereof.

Thus, the single piece fabric 44 is folded or shaped to present a continuous bottom wall 45' and outermost side walls 46 and 47. The end portions of the single piece of fabric 44- are juxtaposed at the center section of the lubricator that provides adjacent inner side walls 48 and 49, and such fold results in a pair of top walls 58 and 51 which complete the two box-shaped pockets 41 and 42. The inner'sidc walls 43 and 49 are separated by a center section 2% identical in construction to the center wick 2% described above, and this wick is secured in place by stitches '51 and 52 which join together the pocket side walls 43 and 49 while securing the center section Zti thereto.

The pockets 41 and 42 are filled by resilient oil absorbent inserts or blocks 55 and 56, and these are retained in place within the pockets by end retainer flaps as 69 and 61 of separate material having the'upper and lower edges thereof stitched to the marginal edges of the fabric 44 at the open front and rear'ends of the pockets 41 and 42.

Advantageously, a pull strap 65 isinterposed between the inner surface of the bottom wall 45 of the lubricator and the free ends of the fabric side walls 48 and 49 afforded in the manner described above. The pull strap is afforded by looping a fabric strip and the strap thus afforded is secured in place by stitches 66 and 67 applies as shown in FIG. 8.

It will be seen from the foregoing that in accordance with the present invention we afford a double pocket, pad-type l-ubricator for a railroad journal bearing characterized 'by a center Wick of bundled yarns having unique ability to rapidly relay lubricant from the deepest part of the journal box along direct vertical paths to the nadir portion of the car journal. Hence, while we have illusttratedlanddescribed preferred embodiments of our invention, it is to be understood that these are capable of variation and modification, and we therefore do not wish to be limited to the precise details set forth, but desire to avail ourselves of such changes and alterations as fall Within the purview of the following claims.

We claim:

I. A lubricator adapted to be inserted beneath the journal in the journal box of a railroad car and comprising, a cover of woven wicking material shaped to aiford a pair of pockets receiving unitary inserts of resilient, oil-absorbent materiaL'said cover being inclusive of pile loops uniformly distributed throughout exposed surfaces thereof, the material affording said cover between said pockets having interposed therebet-Ween a unitary center wick pad separately composed of bundled yarns vertically oriented to present bottom yarn loops to the bottom of the lubricator which is adapted to contact the deepest part of the oil reservoir in the journal box and to present exposed top yarn loops to the top of the lu'bricator for contacting the nadir portion of a railroad car journal.

2. A lubricator according to claim 1 wherein said cover includes separate pieces of fabric each folded to afiord a pocket and each having free ends joined together and stifiened respectively at the outer sides of the lubricator to afford retainers engageable with stops Within the journal box, said separate pieces being encircled at their inner sides by a looped pull strap, said center wick being embraced by said looped strap, and said inner sides of the cover pieces, the looped strap and the center wick being stitched together.

3. A lubricator according to claim 1 wherein said cover is a single piece of fabric.

4. A lubricator according to claim 1 wherein the center wick pad is composed of a plurality of yarns each of which is continuous from one end to the other of the center wick pad and each of which is part of a pick to afford top and bottom yarn loop ends, said yarns being bundled by warps in the form of chain stitched threads.

5. A lubricator according to claim 4 wherein the yarn picks are secured against ravelling by a lock stitch.

6. A lubricator adapted to be inserted beneath the journal in the journal box of a railroad car and comprising, a cover of separate pieces of woven wicking material each shaped to afford a pocket for receiving a unitary insert of resilient, oil-absorbent material, said cover pieces being inclusive of pile loops uniformly distributed throughout exposed surfaces thereof, the material affording said cover pieces between said pockets having interposed therebetween a unitary center wick pad of bundled yarns folded upon itself and vertically oriented to present bottom yarn loops to the bottom of the lubricator which 16 is adapted to contact the deepest part of the oil reservoir in the journal box and to present exposed top yarn loops to the top of the lubricator for contacting the nadir portion of a railroad car journal.

7. A two pocket insert-filled pile loop fabric covered lubricator for a railroad car journal in a journal box and having a center Wick of bundled yarns vertically oriented to present bottom yarn loops to the bottom of the lubricator which is adapted to contact the deepest part of the oil reservoir in the journal box and to present exposed top yarn loops to the top of the lubricator for contacting the nadir portion of a railroad car journal.

8. A lubricator according to claim 7 wherein the bottom yarn loops are exposed at the bottom of the lubricator.

9. A luhr-icator according to claim 7 wherein the bottom yarn loops are in contact with and are covered by a portion of the fabric cover at the bottom of the lubricator.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 403,448 Saunders May 14, 1888 591,406 Koch Oct. 12, 1897 2,279,354 Walters Apr. 14, 1942 2,992,051 Murray July 1 1, 1961 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,227,961 France Mar. 7, 1960 

1. A LUBRICATOR ADAPTED TO BE INSERTED BENEATH THE JOURNAL IN THE JOURNAL BOX OF A RAILROAD CAR AND COMPRISING, A COVER OF WOVEN WICKING MATERIAL SHAPED TO AFFORD A PAIR OF POCKETS RECEIVING UNITARY INSERTS OF RESILIENT OIL-ABSORBENT MATERIAL, SAID COVER BEING INCLUSIVE OF PILE LOOPS UNIFORMLY DISTRIBUTED THROUGHOUT EXPOSED SURFACES THEREOF, THE MATERIAL AFFORDING SAID COVER BETWEEN SAID POCKETS HAVING INTERPOSED THEREBETWEEN A UNITARY CENTER WICK PAD SEPARATELY COMPOSED OF BUNDLED YARNS VERTICALLY ORIENTED TO PRESENT BOTTOM YARN LOOPS TO THE BOTTOM OF THE LUBRICATOR WHICH IS ADAPTED TO CONTACT THE DEEPEST PART OF THE OIL RESERVOIR IN THE JOURNAL BOX AND TO PRESENT EXPOSED TOP YARN LOOPS TO THE TOP OF THE LUBRICATOR FOR CONTACTING THE NADIR PORTION OF A RAILROAD CAR JOURNAL. 